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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. game — wild animals
  4. press — a publisher
  5. rest — a break
  6. club — for dancing
  7. press — to push
  8. club — for golf
  9. mine — for digging
  10. bear — the animal
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. bear — the animal
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. rest — what's left
  15. press — newspapers
  16. game — a match
  17. club — a group
  18. bear — to put up with

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com